Fort Hood Update

People in the crowd are emotional as they take their seats at a memorial service at Fort Hood, Texas, Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2009, where President Barack Obama spoke. (AP)

President Obama and others are at Fort Hood today to remember the 13 people — 12 of them soldiers — who were shot last week. We speak with Daniel Zwerdling of NPR who is reporting about Major Hasan’s time at Walter Reed Hospital.

Buying and Selling Carbon Offsets

As world leaders prepare for next month’s UN Climate Change Conference, we look at what’s known as “avoided deforestation credits”. Mark Schapiro took a look at one use of these credits in Brazil, where General Motors, Chevron and American Electric Power purchased 50,000 acres of Brazilian forests nearly a decade ago. They agreed to preserve the forests, with the understanding that they have the rights to sell carbon offset credits based on how much carbon the forest is storing. Schapiro documents what he found in Mother Jones magazine.

Last Words

On the day when John Allen Muhammad, the so-called “beltway sniper” is to be executed, we take a look at a collection of last words, from prisoners executed in Texas since 1982 and compiled by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Our guest, writer Claire Cameron, has been reading through them.

Health Care & Abortion

President Obama is indicating that Congress should change a controversial provision in the House health care bill that would restrict abortions. The provision would prohibit abortion coverage for women who receive subsidies for health insurance, or who buy their insurance from or through the government, and it would ban insurers from providing abortion coverage if they accept subsidized policyholders. We speak with Alec MacGillis, national politics reporter for the Washington Post.

Woman Saved in Subway Station

A video taken from inside a Boston subway station this past Friday shows a woman falling onto the subway tracks, with a train approaching. People standing by frantically wave, and the train screeches to a halt inches from the woman. Charice Lewis was driving the train, and she was honored yesterday as a hero.

The Man Behind the Bird

Today is the 40th anniversary of the beloved children’s show “Sesame Street“. We mark the occasion by re-airing our visit with Caroll Spinney, the puppeteer-creator of two of that street’s most famous residents: Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch. Big Bird and Oscar also drop by our studios to chat with Robin.